Muscle ache ointments may cause burns: US regulators

US Food and Drug Administration has said that muscle ache ointments may cause skin burns.

US drug regulators said Thursday that consumers are reporting mild to severe skin burns from Bengay and other over-the-counter ointments for muscle and joint aches.

In many of the incidents, which were rare overall, the burns appeared after the first application and sometimes led to complications serious enough to warrant hospitalization, the Food and Drug Administration said in a statement.

The products cited include Johnson and Johnson s Bengay, Sanofi s Icy Hot, the generic Capzasin, Ari-Med s Flexall and Mentholatum, produced by a company of the same name.